You can’t stop the waves,
but you can learn to surf.
-Jon Kabat-Zinn
Adolescent Therapy
The demands on teenagers can be overwhelming. Whether it be peer pressure, anxiety, stress related to school, depression, perfectionism, physical changes, risk taking, self-destructive behaviors, relationship and friendship difficulties, grappling with identity, self- esteem, body dysmorphia, trauma, or loss, the developmental transition from childhood to adulthood can be tough.
Through a mix of verbal and non-verbal creative expression, I can help teens to communicate their thoughts, behaviors, and feelings in a non-traditional way. I have extensive experience working with children in mental health clinics, and in a School Based Health Center (a medical/mental health outpatient clinic located inside high schools) providing adolescent therapy. I have completed intensive postgraduate clinical training in Child and Adolescent Psychodynamic Psychotherapy and I am a Registered Play Therapist. I have a certificate in Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and one in Creative Arts Therapy with a focus on Art Therapy. I take special care in speaking with outside providers, including pediatricians, schools, and psychiatrists in order to best support and maximize treatment. I also incorporate Bibliotherapy into my work, and have co-authored the book My Grief is Like the Ocean: A story for children who lost a parent to suicide.
I am able to connect and engage with adolescents, and help them to express their innermost thoughts, and make sense of what is happening around them. Although these years can be incredibly difficult, I can help you reconnect to your child and support them during what can only be described as the most defining time in a young person's life. All adolescents have inner resources and strengths. I can help teens uncover these strengths in order to move them towards independence, peace, and happiness.